One Piece: Pirate Code

William navigated his small boat back to the vicinity of the Redbeard Pirates' main ship. By the time he arrived, a crowd had already gathered on deck, their eyes fixed on the plume of smoke rising from the Swordfish Pirates' vessel. Some even claimed to have seen an odd mist briefly enshrouding the ship's bow.

Unaware of the full story, the crew hurried to interrogate the returning William.

With a light push from his feet, William leapt from the small boat onto the pirate ship's deck. Though his face was bloodied and his appearance disheveled, two particularly sycophantic crew members immediately rushed forward to assist him.

However, the moment their hands touched William, they recoiled as if shocked by lightning, clutching their numbed fingers and blowing on them to ease the pain.

William frowned slightly—his newly acquired Devil Fruit powers were evidently still beyond his control.

The surrounding pirates, however, didn't notice this odd interaction. Their attention was riveted to the severed head William held in his hand. Many began to piece together the truth, their expressions a mixture of fear and unease.

Ignoring their stares, William's gaze swept across the deck until it landed on Harden, one of the crew members. He asked directly, "Anything happen on the ship while I was gone?"

William was specifically concerned about the deputy captain, Felton, the only person on board both capable and motivated enough to cause trouble in his absence.

To William's surprise, Felton had remained unusually quiet, perhaps out of cowardice or patience. Aside from issuing a few veiled threats earlier, he had made no significant moves.

Harden, however, shrugged and mentioned something else. "The captives... just a while ago, the hair binding them suddenly fell off. Luckily, they were still chained up. I ordered the chains reinforced just in case."

This revelation left William momentarily alarmed. He was unaware that a Devil Fruit user's abilities would dissipate upon their death. Had the captives—though injured and weakened—escaped their bindings, they could have wreaked havoc aboard the ship. William now regarded the Redbeard Pirates as his own, and he wouldn't tolerate any unnecessary losses.

Satisfied with the status report, William issued his next command: "Gather everyone on deck—I have an announcement to make."

Harden shot a glance at the severed head in William's grasp, his expression complicated, before nodding and hurrying off to summon the rest of the crew.

William turned to the nearby pirates, whose faces displayed varying degrees of fear and curiosity, and barked, "Follow me to the bow—now!"

The crew, unsettled by the whirlwind of recent events, instinctively followed William. His decisive actions and clear sense of purpose set him apart from the usual chaos aboard the ship. With his established reputation and newfound aura of authority, the men trailed behind him without hesitation.

Reaching the bow, William grabbed a rag and began methodically wiping the blood from the severed head of Barbarossa, the notorious Redbeard. He sat on a guardrail, silent, as the rest of the crew gradually assembled.

At one point, Clough handed him a brand-new katana.

When the ship's veteran, Hutchison, arrived at the scene, he was greeted by the eerie sight of William casually toying with a severed head, surrounded by an audience of pirates. Startled, Hutchison instinctively took a swig from his flask to steady his nerves.

Scanning the crowd, Hutchison realized nearly every pirate aboard had gathered at the bow, save for a few guarding the captives.

At last, William rose. Lifting the now-cleaned head by its long hair, he revealed the twisted visage of Barbarossa to the crew.

He tied the head securely to a rope, ensuring every pirate could see the identity of the slain man. His movements were slow and deliberate, emphasizing the gravity of the moment.

Even though Hutchison had anticipated this outcome, the sight still caused his hand to tremble, and his cherished flask clattered to the deck.

The crowd murmured in shock, punctuated by sharp gasps and startled exclamations.

Hutchison, too overwhelmed to retrieve his flask, rubbed his eyes repeatedly before muttering with a bitter smile, "Looks like we've got ourselves a new captain."

Barbarossa, infamous for terrorizing East Blue for nearly a decade, was a name that struck fear into countless sailors and villagers. His reputation as a Devil Fruit user, coupled with his ties to corrupt officials, made him seem invincible. For years, the crew had lived under his oppressive shadow.

Now, his severed head dangled before them, held aloft by the hands of a young man they once followed as merely a navigator.

Though some had speculated about this turn of events when William disobeyed Barbarossa's orders earlier, seeing it unfold in reality was another matter entirely.

William, unhurried, secured the head and turned to face the crowd. His piercing gaze swept over the gathered pirates, silencing their whispers.

"Barbarossa is dead," William declared, his calm tone carrying a weight that stunned his audience.

"Many people romanticize our lives with words like 'freedom,' 'adventure,' 'pursuit,' and 'dreams.' But to most of the world, we are nothing more than criminals waiting to be caught."

His voice grew more impassioned. "We are outcasts, forced to carve out our existence on the open sea through sweat and blood. We've abandoned the comforts of ordinary life and risk everything—our swords, our guns, and even our lives—for a chance to claim what is ours."

"And yet, what have we gained in return?" He pointed to the severed head. "Failure is not what we fear. A true man accepts defeat but with the resolve to rise again. As long as we hold onto that ambition, we will always find a way to stand tall."

"But this man," William continued, his voice sharp, "the man we called 'captain'—did he share that ambition? No."

"He failed to unite us, instead descending into madness and cruelty. He forced us to labor like slaves for meager spoils while subjecting us to his wrath. We feared not only the blades of our enemies but also his unpredictable rage."

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